The Accidentals – Odyssey CD/LP (SME Masterworks)
“On their latest, which the three bandmates co-produced in partnership with Jason Lehning, a specialist in roots-inflected alt-pop, they display equal interest in the focused musical forms of indie rock and pop and the expansive potential of orchestral arrangements, jam band open-endedness and impressionistic singer-songwriter expression.” – NPR

The Jerry Douglas Band – What If CD/LP (Rounder/Concord)
Jerry Douglas, the 14x Grammy award winner who has played on over 2,000 separate recordings (Alison Krauss, Mumford & Sons, James Taylor, etc.), presents a new album with a unique sound and a brand-new outfit of musicians, hand-picked by Douglas himself. On What If, Douglas decisively merges jazz inclinations with the bluegrass, country, blues, swing, rock, and soul he’s spent his life absorbing and performing, forging a sound that flies beyond the boundaries of anything he – or anyone else – has done before. The album also includes a funky, soulful take on Tom Waits’ “2:19” and a blistering bluegrass-meets-jam-band reinvention of the classic “Hey Joe.” [Vinyl edition due September 15.]

James Blunt – The Afterlove [Extended Version] CD (Atlantic)
The Afterlove sees Blunt melding contemporary pop production with his classic brand of personal songcraft, equal parts heartfelt poignancy and self-deprecating wit. The chart-topping troubadour enlisted a who’s who of modern talent to join him in writing and recording the album, among them such icons and studio luminaries as Ed Sheeran, Ryan Tedder, Amy Wadge (Ed Sheeran), Johnny McDaid (Example, Biffy Clyro), Stephan Moccio (Miley Cyrus, The Weeknd), and MoZella (Miley Cyrus, One Direction).

Bonobo – One Offs… Remixes & B-Sides [Reissue/2002] CD/2xLP (Tru Thoughts)
Successfully beating the bootleggers at their own game, 2002′s One Offs offered Bonobo fans the chance to get their mitts on rare 12” and 7” cuts, as well as some truly exceptional remixes.

The Cribs – 24-7 Rockstar Sh!t CD/LP (House Arrest)
Recorded to tape in just five days with legendary producer Steve Albini, the Jarman brothers’ new album is a “return to our roots and the raw approach we took on our first two records in 2004 and 2005.” Continue reading →

Arthur Alexander – Arthur Alexander [Reissue/1972] CD (Omnivore)
When The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, Humble Pie, Dusty Springfield, George Jones & Johnny Paycheck, Bob Dylan, the Bee Gees and countless others cover your songs, you must be on to something. Arthur Alexander was a songwriter and song stylist, whose career took off in the early 1960s—writing and recording hits like “Anna (Go To Him)” and “You Better Move On”—some of the earliest hits recorded at Rick Hall’s Fame Studios and featuring the famed Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. After a short break at the end of the decade, he released a self-titled ‘comeback’ album in 1972. This reissue of that album is expanded with six bonus tracks—two previously unissued. Arthur Alexander was produced by Muscle Shoals bassist Tommy Gogbill, and include a version of “Burning Love”—covered by Elvis Presley shortly after the album’s release.

Arcade Fire – Everything Now CD/LP/Cassette (Columbia)
“The torrent of content we absorb on a daily basis is a topic ripe for art that has been largely been under-explored in music thus far, but Arcade Fire don’t do it in somber and morbid fashion, Everything Now being their most upbeat, joyful album to date. It’s like they’ve chopped up a bunch of Abba tracks with this album, tenderized them, sprinkled them with glitter and reassembled them into something a little more subtle and insouciant. Arcade Fire’s fifth studio album doesn’t have the sprawling nature of The Suburbs or Reflektor nor the cacophonic intensity of Funeral, but the sequin-festooned, disco-ish Everything Now is every bit as good as these albums in its own right. Departures in sound are often unwelcome when we’re already so happy with where a beloved band are, but, in this case, their experiments are a complete success.” – The Independent. [Two covers are available: ‘Day Version’ and an exclusive indie-store-only ‘Night Version.’ Limited blue colored vinyl pressing also available.] Continue reading →